Tuesday, August 31, 2010

i'm sick. i have affluenza.

No, not influenza. I have affluenza. Defined as : affluenza, n. a painful, contagious, socially transmitted condition of overload, debt, anxiety and waste resulting from the dogged pursuit of more.

I have too much stuff. Too many clothes, too many craft supplies, too much jewelry, too much junk.  My room is looking cluttered and my closet is so stuffed. And my wallet - is - empty.

I'm giving myself a challenge. The whole month of September, I'm not going to buy any more stuff.
No more clothes.
No more trinkets.
No more candles.
No more whatever.
 source
I mean, I'm sure there will still be things that I'll need to get, like toiletries and whatnot. And if a friend invites me out I can't turn 'em down. But I need to be frugal.


I want to save up to go to Korea. 

Kind of a silly goal, I think, being that I'm too scared to drive to the mall by myself, but for some reason, I'm so in love with Korea, I think I'll have the courage to actually do it. Like when I was in 8th grade and my dad and I went to Minnesota. At the time I was soo obsessed with Minnesota (because Josh Hartnett lived there.. yeah. .. .). We got a hotel room with a view of a parking lot and the roof of some restaurant. But I opened up those curtains and was so overwhelmed with joy. I was in Minnesota!! And the parking lot/roof view was breathtaking to me. <3

Yeah, I think Korea's gunna be like that.


So for the next month, I'm going to confess everything I buy. Judge me harshly.

Not gunna lie though, this t-shirt from threadless makes me want to break this vow right now!  lol!
 HA! .. ooh goodness. :-P

Spread the Love Week - Day Four

Day Four of Spread the Love Week has been pretty fun. I had a friend come over and we watched the movie "I Love You, Man," which is pretty hilarious.
At work, in honor of Spread the Love Week, my friend Alyssa gave me a couple really great mix CDs of Hanson. Yes, that Hanson. They're so much more than MMMBop! They're still playing music and they're petty great.

And she gave me this aaawesome friendship bracelet!! Look it has little hearts!! AA! So cute!
And! And and and! ... It glows in the dark! *squeels* My friends are the best. <3

Also, in honor of Spread the Love Week, I listed my Sarang heyo - ("I love you" in Korean) bracelets in my etsy shop. And they're Pay it Forwards. That means that they're only 20 cents. They're not listed to make money, just to Spread the Love.

And I wanted to say that lately the news has been making me sad. I've been hearing a lot about people committing hate crimes against other people based on their religion. That breaks my heart.

LOVE THY NEIGHBOR. Despite the color of his skin. Or the culture he was born into. Or who he prays or doesn't pray to. Or what he wears or what country he lives in. We're all in this together. Let's hug it out.

Monday, August 30, 2010

Spread the Love Week - Day Three

Sometimes I'm just amazed at how things work out. I think sometimes God sends us little challenges as a friendly way of messing with us. All you can do is laugh about it sometimes.

At the risk of being a little too personal, I'll tell you a little story. About a year ago, a very close friend of mine moved into a bigger house, while my family had recently moved into a smaller one. I loaned him some furniture, since he needed it and I didn't. After a few months, this guy and I had a falling out, and we stopped speaking to each other.

Well last night his room mate texts me saying they are moving into a smaller place, while this time my family is moving into a bigger place! (still waiting on the bank to accept the offer, but we're pretty confident..) He told me no one would be home tomorrow (today), and I could come pick up my furniture any time. (They had made me a spare key back when him and I were close. )
source

So here I am, standing in the house of "the boy who done me wrong," all alone. I could have done anything mean and nasty. For months I've been mad at this guy and kind of hoping the timing would work out so I could have the opportunity to give him what he deserves.

But I didn't. It's Spread the Love Week.
When I got home I texted him. "Hey. Thanks for taking good care of my kitchen table. It means a lot to me.  Sorry I was a bitch to you." And I think I have closure on that now.

On a less personal, just for fun note, I made some CDs for a friend. I told my good friend Alyssa about Spread the Love week, and she told me she would make me a mix CD of her favorite group. And today I made her one in return.

It has 8 tracks of the English versions of some Korean Songs. Sounds kinda weird, I know. But these songs are actually pretty good. ;) Here! Listen!

mmm Taeyang.. abs like a Hershey bar..


this one makes me think "team jacob." lol


and these are English covers by JD Relic. Sounds great but the videos are a little awkward and silly to just sit and watch.





What do you think? ;)

Sunday, August 29, 2010

Spread the Love Week- Day Two

Spread the Love Week has been a lot of fun so far. Last night I made these little cards to pass out. I wanted to spread the word about Spread the Love. If anyone would like to have these cards to pass out, email me and I will send you the PDF file. (angiemayhandmade [at] yahoo [dot] com)

Last night I had the idea to make little bracelets and stamp "I LOVE YOU" on them. (inspired by these wish ribbons) But instead I decided to make my own stamp. I had bought a stamping block and carving tool a while back for Elsie's Style School, but I never got around to using them. Well today I finally did. I think I can count this as something on my goals list, too.

It reads, "Serang heyo," my favorite Korean phrase. It means I love you, and it was the first thing i learned to say/read/write in Korean.
I made a bunch of ribbon bracelets. Aren't they cute? I made a trip to Jo Ann Fabrics today to pick up fabric paint, and while I was there, I saw this cute little egg whisk. My mom had mentioned she wanted to get a whisk, but she doesn't like to spend money, so she hasn't gotten one. At first I passed it up, thinking, "If she really wants it, she can buy it herself," and started walking on. Then I stopped dead in my tracks and remembered what this week is all about.
My mom's gunna have the cutest, happiest, most cheerfuly rainbow whisk ever. I hope she smiles every time she makes eggs. Oh, and after I checked out, I gave the cashier one of the cards I made, and told her about Spread the Love Week. Which was awkward for me cause I'm super shy. :] But I did it anyway. Is anyone else out there taking part in Spread the Love week? Let me know all about it!

Serang heyo. <3

Saturday, August 28, 2010

Spread the Love Week - Day One

Day One of Spread the Love week was a success. (And yes, as you can tell by the picture, I'll be wearing love-themed clothes all week.. because I'm dorktastic like that.) ;)

When I opened my eyes this morning, first thing I thought was, "Wasn't there something I was supposed to do today..? .. .. OOH! Spread the Love!" So I hopped out of bed (around noon.. I LOVE summer) and started working away on making friendship bracelets to take to work.
 
Probably like 90% of my good friends are my co-workers. It makes it so much easier to go into work, knowing that you love all the people there like family.  After I got a little sun out back, I came in to make cookies. I found this recipe that looked pretty simple, with normal ingredients that I already had.

As it turns out, after I mixed the dry ingredients together, I plopped by butter in the bowl and went to put in the sugar. .. .. I WAS A CUP SHORT! AAAH! So I had to get in the car and drive to the store.. When I got back, I was finishing up the cookies and went to grab the last ingredient- vanilla. .. WE WERE OUT OF VANILLA!! WHO THE HECK RUNS OUT OF VANILLA?? Seriously though, you never use more than a spoonful at a time- a bottle last for like, years.. *uugh* (and I don't say these things in an angry tone- when things like this happen, I just throw my hands in the air and laugh) Aaanway, when the cookies were FINALLY done, I brought them to work to share with my lovely friends. And the cookies were delish, if I do say so myself. ;) Hard work and frustration paid off.

While I was at Hobby Lobby, dropping off my cookies and bracelets, I got a little something for my kitty cat. She loooves pom poms. She has about a million scattered around the house already, but she likes them best when they are fresh out of the package. (I know, I know, spoiled. and kind of weird. But hey, what can you do?) Normally, I wouldn't have gotten these for her, since she really doesn't need them, but I thought, "You know what, it's Spread the Love Week."

And check out this picture. Action shot. lol
Also while I was there, I got this little wallet card for my Ex. Him and I broke up a year ago, but we have a long history, so we stayed friends. And we are both much happier that way, just for the record. But I wanted him to know that I'm there for him, even though too often in his life, he feels like everybody is against him.
So that's it for day one. I wonder that tomorrow will bring. <3

Friday, August 27, 2010

"spread the love" week

i was completely overwhelmed with melissa's post here on oh my darling today. it was about spreading the love. one year ago, she was the victim of a violent attack, and now on the anniversary of that day, she's looking to counteract the hateful things people do in the world.

she calls it "Spread the Love Week," and if you would like to participate, please check out her blog post here. i hiiighly recommend it! and you can get the cute button to put on your blog too, so you can spread the word about Spread the Love. :)

 i'm participating, of course, and here are a few ideas of things i've already planned on doing:

1) make friendship bracelets and cookies for my friends at work. i *miraculously* have the day off tomorrow, and saturdays are super stressful for the girls at the hobby lobby where i work, so i wanted to do a little something for the ones who are stuck there 8 hours tomorrow.

2) write back my penpals! i keep meaning to do it and i keep letting the day get away from me. >_<
3) send a little inspiring card to my ex-boyfriend. we dated for 6 years, and the last couple years of our relationship were really hard because he developed a drug addiction. its something he still struggles with now. we're still friends and do a pretty good job of keeping in touch. and he only lives 10 minutes away, but still. i want to send him a card to let him know that he's a special person to me and i know he has the power to kick the habit once and for all.

4) donate some clothes to charity.

5) my friend's birthday is coming up and i was gunna buy her something, but now that i think about it, making her something would be more meaningful.

6) send a few thank-yous to people i think deserve them. ;)

i hope lots of people participate in this project. let's take it a step further and try to rid ourselves of negative thoughts about others. sound like a plan? awesome. :]

Thursday, August 26, 2010

SUUURSPRISE!

i got my surprise ball from the lovely Brina last night! :D it was so exciting! and i was fortunate enough to share the event with my bff, who had come over after work to go jogging with me. hence the bad photo. lol i was in a rush to photograph it and tear into it before it got dark outside. :]
it was soo much fun unwrapping this little pretty!! :-P Brina had put CUTE CUTE owl stickers all over the outside, and every so often, a little bit of pink butterfly confetti would sprinke out onto my lap and we would giggle uncontrollably. ^.^
such awesome stuff in here, for real! some super adorable handmade owl stuffies, red polka dot hair bows, a pink manicure set and fun glittery and pink nail polish, 2 cute rubber stamps, lip gloss that smells like peeeaches *mmm*, the cutest owl stickers I've ever seen in my life! and caaaandy! she gave me swedish fish here too, but i couldnt wait.. i gobbled them up before i could take the picture.. *blushes*

so freakin cute! these are soo my style.. i was actually looking at stamps the other day that looked a lot like these. so perfect!

pale pink is one of my fave colors. and of sparkly is too, if sparkly is a color! ;) hehe

every flat surface in my room will soon be owl-fabulous.. :) arent these just so cute you could die??

and these guys! nothing like the handmade touch to warm the heart. <3 i think owls are the mascot of team AWESOME. .. .. :]

thank you, Brina, for all my wonderful surprises! i love them all!

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

natural beauty

aesthetic outburst is one of my favorite blogs. always something pretty to be found there. today i saw this little tutorial for making these cute butterfly finger puppets. so cute!
 
even though this is super simple, i think its amazingly beautiful. <3 so in love.
 my family and i are still waiting to see if we will be moving to a bigger house. crossing our fingers.. if we DO move, i think i'll make a big bouquet of these pretty sticks for the living room.

Monday, August 23, 2010

summer nights, staying in

i made something yesterday. this little owl. i think he's cute. :) i haven't put him on etsy yet because i haven't taken pictures of him (other than these). he's sitting on my korean folder. it says, "hangumal" which is korean for korean. (like how we call it "spanish" but they call it "espaƱol," you know? we call it "korean", they call it "hangumal.") anyway, i thought i'd share my newest owl, and a little sneek peek into what i spend every night doing...
eating snacks, studying korean, drinking wheat grass juice, and watching music videos on youtube. i'm up till 3 am most nights doing the same thing. and i love it. this is the best summer i've had since i was a little kid. i couldn't be happier with the way things are. well, things could always be better, but i can't complain!! =D
my friend alyssa made me this hello kitty cutout with her cricket machine. (i mentioned alyssa here- where she decorated some really awesome Tom's Shoes.) well, alyssa was on TV last night. if you watched the show bridezillas on WE at 9:00, you may have seen her. she was the maid of honor, and her friend alex was the bride(zilla). if you missed it, you can catch the second half next week. Sunday, WE network, 9:00. don't miss it! alyssa is a really good friend of mine. i've been working with her at hobby lobby for almost 4 years now. if you like, you can even check out her etsy! she makes REALLY cute resin jewelry.

Sunday, August 22, 2010

shoe love


There's just something I love about this. <3

Saturday, August 21, 2010

*giggles*

Omg.
This phrasebook is amazing.

"Dude, where's my car?"
Imma, nae cha eodinnya?

"Metrosexual"
kkonminam ida (flowerly handsome)

"Your ass is playing the flute!"
Eongdeong-iga pirireul!

I am entertained.<3

Friday, August 20, 2010

Fun with my friends

In my last post, I named my 4 goals to accomplish by the end of the year. Goal #4 was to spend more time with my friends. Kinda funny how these things work out.. Last night my good friend Kyla invited me out to dinner. Then today I went to the Farmer's Market with my friend James. Then my BFF Amber was free today, so we went jogging together. (Which I hope is the first of many workouts together. If I had a Goal #5, it would be to be more active.) I only got photos at the farmer's market, and only a few turned out. *they have a little petting zoo in the back* But I'll share those few photos. :)

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Four Simple Goals

I've decided to take part in Elsie's Four Simple Goals (before 2011).
Soo here they are!

1) Learn enough of the Korean Language that I can understand some simple songs or books/articles. Another little sub-goal here is to go to a Korean restaurant and try to have a conversation with the waiter in Korean. *hehe*
Reward: I'll buy myself some shirts of Korean boybands that I like. *I am SUCH a dork!* :)

2) Learn to crochet and make a scarf. I can knit, but I can't crochet. I've been wanting to learn for years but I haven't gotten around to it.
Reward: buy myself a pair of boots that goes with my new crocheted scarf :)
3) Spend more time with my friends. And take pictures! I'm very much a home-body. I love to just stay home and veg out. But I SOO love my friends. I need to show it more- maybe by spending more time with them. <3
Reward: If I take fun pictures, I'll get some fun scrapbook supplies and scrap my pics!

4) Make stuff! I've really let my etsy go lately. I've been working a lot more over the summer since I'm not in school, and lately all my free time has gone towards watching Korean music videos and studying the language. I really want to get the artist side of me back. Drawing in my sketchbook, making hair clips and jewelry, soap and candles. I miss doing these things. There's a craft store down the street and I've been meaning to ask them about booth rental prices, but I haven't yet. There's another goal, right there.
Reward: If I'm successful, and make any money, I'll spend it on something fun from etsy. Not sure what, but something cool. ;)

guest blogging

hey everybody! check out the guest blogging I did for Melissa at Oh My Darling!

Monday, August 16, 2010

shoe inspiration

Alyssa, a good friend and co-worker of mine, took a plain pair of white Tom's and made them awesome. Check it out. Oh, and if you aren't familiar with Tom's shoes, you should really check them out. For EVERY pair of shoes you buy, Tom's donates a pair to a child in need. It's pretty great.

She used fabric dye and Sharpie markers. Aren't they cute?!